By John J. Checki Jr. and John J. (J. J.) Checki III
Hope your day is going well and we are both filled with passion and purpose. After many years of experience and research, I read a wonderful list done by CEG Worldwide and 4,000 financial advisors internationally that have continued the research. What you are about to read is based on that research. Enjoy and let us know how we did.
- Wealth Preservation
Fear of loss seems to be even more important than the desire for gain. Yes, that does sound fear based rather than goal oriented. The affluent are concerned about preserving and not losing their wealth. Despite their wealth, they are not immune to financial setbacks and the fear of loss. But wealth preservation is not only about not losing money—it’s about having enough money to fund their lifestyles, whether simple or extravagant. How fun having control of our schedule and having the money to enjoy the journey. Don’t we all enjoy this, yet we have limits as to what we will and won’t spend, whether it is a bottle of wine, or a plane ticket.
The goal of wealth preservation is to produce the best possible investment returns consistent with the client’s time frame and risk tolerance. This is the primary area of focus for most financial advisors. As a wealth manager, investment management will be only the foundation of the value we provide to affluent clients. This is the beginning of our services, we also address and help the affluent address their other five key financial concerns.
- Wealth Enhancement
What a great expression! Wealth Enhancement is about tax mitigation: minimizing the impact of taxes on client’s investment returns while ensuring the cash flow they need.
We have seen that minimizing income taxes is one of the major financial concerns of the great majority of affluent individuals and families. Mitigating estate taxes and capital gains taxes also ranks high on their list of concerns.
It’s no surprise that so many affluent share these tax-related concerns. Taxes can—and do—eat up a great deal of wealth. As a wealth manager, we help our clients enhance their wealth by minimizing this impact, while working with their CPA, attorney, and professional team of advisors.
- Health Care Costs
Yes, even people with one million dollars or more of investable assets have health care cost concerns. Really? Sure, they’re worried about the cost of a heart transplant or hospital stay, or the ultimate fear––long-term care––and how it will affect our cash flow and balance sheet. We have studied this and experienced it as well. My mom, who we call Nana, has been in a memory care unit for 25 months. The costs are $4,875 per month. The unknowns are growing even as we speak. How long will I be there, how much will it cost, what are the conditions, and how will this affect my family?
- Wealth Transfer
Effective wealth transfer is all about taking care of heirs: finding and facilitating the most tax-efficient way to pass assets to loved ones in ways that meet the client’s wishes with minimal difficulty and cost. It is Legacy Planning: making sure our hard work, and accumulation of assets, wisdom, and treasures are passed on to those we love.
Thanks to today’s tax environment, affluent families need to plan ahead with their wealth transfer planning efforts if they want their wealth to benefit their heirs to the fullest extent possible. As a wealth manager, we help our clients become aware and plan ahead. Again we work with their attorney and advisory team.
- Wealth Protection
Undue loss? This includes all concerns about protecting the client’s wealth against catastrophic loss, potential creditors, litigants, children’s spouses, and potential ex-spouses and identity thieves—in short, ensuring that their assets are not unjustly taken.
Many affluent individuals are worried about being sued—not surprising, given how litigious our culture has become. This means that as a wealth manager, we need to address controlling risks through business processes, employment agreements and buy-sell agreements, as well as restructuring various assets and considering legal forms of ownership—such as trusts and limited liability entities—that will help put our client’s wealth beyond the reach of creditors and other parties who endeavor to take it. Not to mention Legacy Planning, that protects their kids from their future ex-spouses.
- Charitable Giving
We write checks to our church, support missionaries and ministries, the arts, Chanel 13 KERA, and a couple of foundations. Many affluent individuals are looking outward beyond their own families. For these folks, making meaningful gifts to charity in the most impactful way possible is a key issue. Many of our clients support charities, the arts, and missions. Charitable giving comes with its own unique set of challenges—from selecting the appropriate means of giving (such as direct gifts, donor-advised funds or private family foundations) to selecting causes and specific organizations that will have the biggest impact. As a wealth manager, we help our charitably-minded clients to navigate the charitable planning process. Again, this is done in concert with professionals who have the heart, expertise, and skill to provide us the proper planning path.
Conclusion
Wealth preservation, wealth enhancement, health care costs, wealth transfer, wealth protection, and charitable giving––we are familiar with this list. Many of our clients have agreed and helped us learn even more about their concerns over the years.
Our passion is to effectively address each of these key financial concerns. It is the bedrock of our value promise to our affluent clients and prospective clients.
Securities are offered through Securities America Inc., member FINRA and SIPC, Advisor services offered through Securities America Advisors., an SEC Registered Investment Advisor. John Checki, Jr. Representative. This is not a CPA Firm.
John and his firm have been helping some of the nicest families in North Dallas, Richardson, Plano, and Frisco for about 30 years. We specialize in baby boomer wealth management and have a unique and complete wealth management process. You can read the rest of our story on my website. My proudest accomplishment is my family: children, grandchildren, and wife. We love to travel, scuba dive, take pictures, study, and attend family and church gatherings.
